I really enjoyed reading this, @kaelci! This word made me laugh out loud: fahschnickered. I knew instantly what it meant, but I assume it's a made-up word. You're a gifted essayist, at the very least. I've read short stories of yours, and I know you are a talented fiction writer as well, but haven't read any of your longer works yet. I wish you the very best as you get them ready for publication. Writing long works -- a series, in your case -- is quite the marathon!
I love your life balance goals. Your struggle to find the right mix of alone-working-on-creative-stuff time and being with the crowd, connecting on Discord, and being with family and focusing on health really resonated with me. I have the same challenge. It's not going away. But what we can do is schedule things a little more, connect a little more, set our own stuff aside at least a few times a week for family, and make sure we do stuff with them. I'll be writing up my own New Year's post today. You have inspired me!!
p.s. Your new character is amazing.